Off The Field

On The Field

News

All Blacks

Scotland surprised at Wallabies naivety

James Mortimer 06 Jun 2012 Getty Images

Scotland coach Andy Robinson felt that the Wallabies were their worst own enemies in their 9-6 loss last night, playing tactics that weren't suited to the conditions, with Newcastle rolling out some horror conditions.

It seemed as far removed from Australia as one could get, with the Scots no doubt grinning when they saw weather conditions that wouldn't have been out of place at a rain soaked Murrayfield.

The visitors were content to rely on their tenacious defence, and after many media commentators in Europe labelled the Thistles one-dimensional after their Six Nations wooden spoon - it was the second ranked nation in world rugby that showed lack of tactical adjustment.

One commentator remarked that the Wallabies looked like one-trick ponies, and a frustrated Deans remarked that their gameplan wasn't suited to grinding out such a result.

Robinson hailed the Wallabies contribution to the result.

"Obviously the way they played helped us, you can't deny that," Robinson said.

"Those conditions are tough and sometimes by moving the ball you get concerned about the turnover that can occur.

"When you've got that pressure on your line it does need the ball to be moved and that's something for all players to understand, that by shifting the focus it would have put us under a bit more pressure."

The Wallabies at their pomp are one of the more dangerous ball shifting sides in world rugby, but they looked bereft of ideas as the hosts looked more and more frustrated as the contest progressed.

The win made it back-to-back wins for Scotland over Australia for the first in 30 years, a date that also represented the only time the tourists had won in Wallabies territory.

That win had been a 12-7 win at Ballymore in 1982, and the second victory in Australia gave Scotland their ninth win over the Wallabies in 27 attempts.

Robinson, who was in charge when Scotland won another nailbiter against the Wallabies in 2009, winning 9-8 at Murrayfield, said that the result was huge, as it broke a run of seven losses for the team.

"It's very important for the side to show the courage that we did in defence, particularly when you turn around at halftime and it's only 6-3, it was going to have to be an amazing effort to win the game," he said.

"Back-to-back victories for a Scottish team against Australia is immense and I'm absolutely delighted for the players and their families."